Technical Field
The present invention is in the technical field of wheel/rail wear and noise management among rail vehicles. More particularly, the present invention is in the technical field of a fleet lubrication operating system.
Related Art
Old or poorly maintained rail infrastructure, train wheels, or a combination of both can increase “wheel-climbing” and other known unfortunate wheel/rail dynamic occurrences, increasing the chances of a rail vehicle derailing event. Rail-vehicle derailments are always events that should be avoided, considering the high probability of loss of lives, as well as the costs resulting from the damage and subsequent repairs. For example, as published, the average derailment cost in the United States is currently estimated to be $1.4 million per derailment incident.
The normal wear and tear on rails and wheels is a common problem that all rail-based vehicles face. The corrugation and normal wear and tear requires the wheels and rails to be re-profiled and re-grinded throughout the life of the wheels and rails, as well as frequent replacement when such rails and wheels are no longer able to be repaired.
Further, the friction experienced between the wheels and rails, also called a wheel/rail interface, has a great impact on the performance and safety of the rail-based vehicles, including the number of engines needed to pull or push a collection of rail-based vehicles, as well as the increase in energy needed. Further, a common problem that occurs between the interaction between the rails and the wheels of the rail-based vehicles is curve squeaking, the noise resulting from the interaction of rails and wheels in curved portions of a track. Curve squeaking is an undesirable nuisance for those residences and businesses in the vicinity of rail tracks.
The two main frictions occurring between rail-based vehicles and rails are the enormous vertical force 4 and lateral force 5 applied to the interface between the wheel 1 and rail 2, as illustrated in FIG. 1. The lateral forces 5 cause friction between the flange 3 of any wheel 1 and the rail 2. The vertical forces 4 cause friction along the top of the rail 2 which engages the wheel 1. These frictions are greatly increased at curves occurring in the rail 2, with much the greater vertical friction occurring along the outer rail and as well as on the top of the inner rail, as shown in FIG. 2. As discussed above, curve squeaking is a result of both of these frictions, with each type of friction contributing specific noise characteristics which can be combined into a single heard sound, as shown in FIG. 3.
The lubrication of the wheels 1 of the railed-based vehicles as well as the rails 2 themselves can reduce the problems discussed above. Based on the physics and dynamics of the wheel/rail interface among all rail vehicles, and the needs to protect the rail vehicle components, the industry differentiates between four different wheel/rail lubrication applications: Wheel-Flange Lubrication, Top of Rail (TOR) or Rail-Head lubrication, Wheel/Rail Conditioning, and Component Lubrication.
Wheel-Flange lubrication involves lubricant (or a friction modifier) being applied to the inner flange 3 of a vehicle's wheel 1 to address lateral friction 5 (as shown in FIG. 1), which is caused by the centrifugal forces applied by the wheel flange 3 to the inner side of the outer rail 1. The centrifugal forces are at the greatest when a train goes travels through a curve. Wheel flange lubrication also addresses many issues created by the general wheel/rail dynamic, where lateral and vertical forces between the inner wheel-flange 3 and the inner rail 2 constantly occur. When groove-rails are employed, usually in instances where rail 2 shares paths with other transportation vehicles (e.g., street cars and trams traveling on streets), lubricant is applied on both sides of the wheel-flange.
TOR lubrication involves lubricant being applied only to the top of the rail 2. TOR lubrication addresses specifically the lateral wheel movement on the inner rail in a curve, as well as the slip-slide and creeping effect, which is caused by the wheel/rail dynamics. TOR lubrication deals with very different application requirements than wheel-flange lubrication. The TOR application method and strategies require a much higher quality lubricant/friction modifier, which are much more costly than lubricants/friction modifier utilized in the wheel-flange lubrication. Only lubricants designed specifically TOR application can handle the higher forces. Therefore, more advanced application systems are needed to keep the needed friction coefficient on top of the rail intact and to guarantee that breaking distance is not extended. Many rail-operators today are still afraid to apply lubricant on top of the rail, believing the rail-based vehicle may lose traction as a result.
Wheel/rail conditioning occurs when lubricant is to not only prevent friction and noises, but also to control the correct or ideal friction coefficient as well as to prevent/reduce corrosion, reduce wheel/rail interface driving noises, and improve overall safety and passenger comfort of a rail vehicle. In some situations, both wheel/flange and TOR lubrications may also be included wheel/rail conditioning.
Last, component lubrication occurs when lubrication is applied to other friction causing components, such as track switches, turnouts, frogs and guardrails or vehicle couplers which require their own lubrication systems or manual lubrication maintenance.
Many lubrication components and systems have been used to perform the application of lubricants when needed. Such components can be include on-board lubrication systems, including, but not limited to on-board lubrication systems controlled by curve, speed, sensors or time depended lubrication systems, accelerometers, or simple mechanically applied (e.g., spring-loaded) friction modifier sticks, such as the Kelsan™ friction modifier stick. In addition, stationary lubrication systems (also known as track-side or wayside systems), which apply lubricant to the wheel/rail interface, can be used. Such stationary systems can apply lubricant when a rail vehicle drives over it, or can be controlled by simple algorithms, which can count the vehicles, axles, number of trains, and/or the time period has passed.
While the industry does have various applications and devices to apply the lubrication in these different manners, none meet all four engineering principals for properly lubricating two metallic surfaces when they interface. The four engineering principals are (1) lubricating at the right location; (2) lubricating at the right time; (3) lubrication with the right lubricant; and (4) lubricating in the right amount. Further, such systems are configured to be installed, controlled and managed on an independent, individual basis, with no cross-management or control between them. Individual configurations, setups, and optimizing changes have to be applied to each of these single lubrication or friction modifier systems or equipment.
Therefore, transit authorities have to operate and monitor these systems individually, including maintenance tasks on each individual lubrication component, which is very time-consuming and costly. Optimizing and changes of lubrication strategies, operation modes or collecting fleet wide lubrication data involves visits to each single lubrication system, installed wayside or onboard to apply fleet-wide adjusting. Such optimization is not only costly, but also requires time and manpower, which most fleet operators do not have. Therefore, the adjustment/collection can take months or even years, to apply a fleet-wide change. Such measures are extremely inefficient, especially when considering fleet operations which receive new vehicles with onboard lubrication or a series of new wayside lubricators, which most likely have to be adjusted after the initial startup phase. Therefore, there is a need for a system and method to apply lubricants and other friction modifiers to the wheels and rails of a fleet of rail-based vehicles according to the four engineering principals. In addition, there is a need for a system that can centrally manage and monitor, control and optimize all lubricant controls and systems utilized by a fleet authority.